A tenant at Koreatown Plaza (KTP) in Los Angeles was sued for allegedly failing to pay rent, despite claiming to have made all payments in cash and possessing receipts. This lawsuit adds another layer to the ongoing controversy surrounding KTP, where tenants are already disputing demands to pay rent that had previously been forgiven by the former property owner.
According to Tenant A, KTP’s current property owner filed a lawsuit in August 2023 demanding repayment of $150,000 in rent, which the owner claimed was unpaid for one year. However, Tenant A insists that they paid rent in full every month in cash to then-manager Chris Yoon, who also issued receipts for each payment.
“I paid my rent in full and kept all the receipts, yet I was sued and told to pay again,” Tenant A stated. “I submitted all the receipts as evidence to the court through my attorney.”
The lawsuit was set to hold its first hearing in mid-February, but KTP’s ownership unexpectedly withdrew the case on February 5, just days before the scheduled hearing.
To verify Tenant A’s claims, this publication attempted multiple times to contact Chris Yoon, the former KTP manager who allegedly received the cash payments and issued receipts. However, as of February 6 at 5 p.m, there has been no response from Yoon, who is no longer employed at KTP.
Tenant A expressed frustration, stating, “It is not illegal to pay rent in cash, and I handed it directly to the manager each month. The money didn’t just disappear. But instead of resolving the issue, I was sued.”
The tenant also shared that dealing with the lawsuit for six months had been an exhausting process, especially given that they had evidence of payment.
KTP’s current owner, Young Kim, declined to comment on why the lawsuit was filed and subsequently withdrawn when contacted by this publication on February 6.
This latest lawsuit follows a broader rent dispute at Koreatown Plaza, where multiple business owners have been asked to repay rent that was previously forgiven by the former building owner Yang Joong-nam during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kim has stated that different tenants owe different amounts based on their outstanding balances and credits from before and after the pandemic, adding, “The new owner’s policies take priority.”
As tensions between KTP’s tenants and the property owner escalate, affected business owners are seeking legal counsel to determine their options.
BY BRIAN CHOI [ichoi@koreadaily.com]
